Garove
- Terra ASTER
- 30 May 2003
- 00:24 UTC
Garove, the largest of the Vitu Islands, lies in the southern Bismarck Sea 87 km north from the northern coast of western New Britain; New Britain's Willaumez Peninsula is 64 km to the southeast. The other members of the Vitu Islands group, Mundua, Narage, and Unea are located 7 km to the northwest, 35 km to the southwest and 37 km to the northwest, respectively.
The 13 km wide volcanic island has a low profile, rising to 368 m above sea level. There are no historically recorded eruptions from Garove, although lava flow structures on the northwestern coast maybe only several hundred years old.
Garove has a varied coastline, with sandy beaches, rocky slopes, low cliffs and vegetated slopes that descend directly to the shore. Fringing reefs are present around much of the island, particularly in the east and north. From the coast, where steep slopes are absent. the island rises to coastal lowlands and to valleys that penetrate the thickly wooded, hilly interior.
The most dramatic feature of Garove is the 5 km wide flooded caldera on the southern side of the island. A 1 km wide breach on the south leads in to the caldera, known as Johann Albrecht Harbour. The caldera has steep-sided walls of 100-150 m in height; its floor lies at great depth, reaching 100-200 m. Peel's Island lies within Johann Albrecht Harbour, near the eastern rim of the caldera.
Synonyms: Deslacs Island, Ile des Lacs
image: ASTER volcano archive jpl/nasa
Location Map
